Something Wicked Torchwood Comes
by Jessie Blackwood
Summary: Gothic Torchwood brings Jack uncomfortably close to something he'd prefer to forget, while it seems the lurking fears waiting for them are playing on their deepest insecurities.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood, The Last Unicorn or Something Wicked This Way Comes…much as I'd like to. No infringement intended….**

**Rated M for safety. Some swearing, also some sexual scenes later. **

**Something Torchwood This Way Comes…**

_This story is inspired by three things ~ The Night Travellers from the Torchwood episode "From Out of the Rain", Mommy Fortuna's Midnight Carnival ("Creatures of night, brought to light…") from The Last Unicorn by Peter Beagle, and the book (and film) Something Wicked This Way Comes, by Ray Bradbury. I love the old fashioned fairground, the music from the steam organs, the traction engines driving the rides, the lights, the darkness, the smoke. There is something enticingly dangerous, something freakish, something wierd and wicked… Implications of decadence, guilty pleasure and gothic horror lurking in the shadows. Mirror mazes, bearded ladies, freaks and calliopes. _

_Expect fear, horror, magic and nightmares. This is a ride with a difference…_

_Suggested music tracks to read this by – The Lost Boys soundtrack, particularly the fairground organ music "To the Shock of Miss Louise" by Thomas Newman and "Cry Little Sister" by Gerard McMann, also Madam Giry's Tale/The Fairground from Phantom of the Opera. Any fairground organ music works. _

_**Here's a little bit of trivia for you ~**__ did you know that American fairground carousels go the opposite way round to British ones? This is something I learned only recently. Carousels run clockwise in the United Kingdom, the opposite of all American ones and most world wide. A British outer horse's left side faces out, and therefore is the more elaborate, or "romance," view._

**It arrived by night…**

_It comes in the dark, answering the collective decadence of human dreams on hot summer nights. Down through the ages is has been drawn to the darker side of human nature, for that is where it feeds. It preys on the angst created by lies, deceit and guilt. It breathes the steam of the traction engines, basks in the bright garish lights, the brash brass of the gilded wooden carvings and the richness of the tasteless colours. Hedonistic and shameless, it revels sensuously in the organ music and drifts through the shadows, hinting at indecent delights of a forbidden nature. It revels in sinful magic, erotic dreams and dark desires…_

"Rift spike" Tosh warned, eyeing the monitor "Near Druidstone Road, I'm sending the co-ordinates to the SUV now"

Jack looked across at her "Right, what do we know?"

"No clear readings yet" she confirmed "Sorry, nothing to go on."

One minute the field was calm, dewy grass under a clear summer sky, unkempt trees straggling along its edge. The next it was home to an unruly collection of wagons, traction engines, carts and caravans. Nobody saw them arrive. Nobody saw them as they emerged from their homes, blinking sleep from their eyes, yawning and moving about to unpack bags, boxes and cabin trunks. Coal was shovelled, boilers were stoked, lights flickered, steam began to escape from stacks and valves. Music threaded through the crisp air of early morning, rides were unpacked, bolted together like so many disparate jigsaws.

Tea cups and roosters, tigers, lions, pigs and cats inhabited the merry-go-rounds and, of course, garishly coloured horses outnumbered everything else. One carousel dominated the rest, the largest, four-abreast horse carousel of all. Captain Jack's Amazing Galloping Horses took pride of place in the forefront of the fair, black horses decked in silver harness, burgundy horses decked in gold, sapphire blue eyes winking in the lights above. Each horse had a name, gilded lettering on a painted ribbon on each glossy neck ~ "Jack", "Tommy", "Grey", "Rose"... Each horse was still, silent, waiting.

The SUV hammered through the suburbs of Cardiff, shooting a red light. This late nobody was around to mind but there would probably be another traffic offence for Ianto to cover up tomorrow. They sped down Druidstone road with Tosh's voice in their ears guiding them to where the co-ordinates mapped the anomaly. As they drew nearer, Gwen spied the lights on the other side of the hedge.

"Hey, what have we here?" she frowned "a Fairground? A bit out of the way, isn't it?""

Jack slowed as they drove past and craned his neck to look. "Since when? I don't remember there ever being a fair held on this field."

"Probably a farmer diversifying" Ianto offered, trying to get a better look. Ahead, a gap in the hedge proclaimed 'car park' with an arrow.

"Its around there somewhere." Tosh was saying "You're almost on top of it."

"So, let's go look. Sounds like its somewhere here anyway." Gwen said.

Jack indicated and turned off the road and was met by a grinning clown who pointed to where several other vehicles were parked. Most of them were of a vintage variety.

He pulled up beside a rather nice sporty Morgan, its red paint gleaming in the lights. It sat incongrously between a Morris Minor Traveller and a Ford Cortina. The Entrance was up ahead of them, a wooden archway proudly proclaiming Feeny's Midnight Dreams Travelling Show. Jack frowned, that name was familiar.

"Good evenin', Lady and Gentlemen" said the costumed ticket girl. She was wearing all the trimmings of a 'Hurdy Gurdy Gal' from the fishnet stockings, buttoned up Victorian style boots, a tightly laced red corset with its skirt of gossamer tulle and feathers, plenty of feathers. The corset gave her a distinct 'shelf' that Owen was looking at rather admiringly and Jack was remembering something to go by his face. Ianto nudged him out of his reverie.

"Just the four of you love, that'll be…" she paused "…five pounds each"

Owen opened his mouth to protest but Jack brought out his wallet and paid without question. The girl issued them with four tickets, gilt edged and decorated with scrolled lettering. "Everything is free inside" she said and moved away to let them in.

"Admit one to the wonders of Feeny's Electric Palace and Midnight Dreams Travelling Show" Ianto read out loud. "This is a bit retro, isn't it?"

They walked through the archway.

Back at the Hub, Tosh was having problems of her own. "Jack? Owen?" she began to sound frantic "Anybody!" but there was no reply.

In front of them sat the biggest fairground horse carousel any of them had ever seen. It boasted black horses and burgundy ones, their manes and tails either gold or silver, mounted on barley sugar twist poles. As they watched it began to turn, slowly at first, then faster, whirling round, the horses a blur.

"I remember riding on one of them when I was little" Gwen said "A fair came to the playing field near where we lived. Mum wouldn't let me go alone, so we all ended up going, mum, dad, my sister. I wanted to ride the carousel with the horses. Mum was terrified I would fall off. I begged and pleaded and eventually she came with me, only I insisted I ride a horse on my own. I didn't want her sitting behind me. I loved it. I was riding a horse."

"You were riding a wooden monstrosity" Owen insisted.

"I was six Owen, I was a little girl and I loved ponies!" Gwen said indignantly.

They watched as mimes and clowns cavorted past, jugglers and fire breathers following in their wake. They disappeared into the striped circus tent across the far side of the field.

They walked past sidestalls and games, garishly coloured and striped, prizes hanging at each side. As they passed, they heard some men talking what sounded like gibberish.

"Its not gibberish" Jack said to Owen's comment "Its Parlyaree"

"Parley-a-what?"

"Parleyaree" Jack said "It's the Showman's speech, a mix of Romany, Yiddish, Thieves Cant, sailor slang, back slang, all sorts"

"I thought Thieves Cant was just fantasy." Gwen said sagely.

"Nope, it did exist, largely to screw over the police and anyone else taking an interest where they shouldn't" Jack went on "It was thought to have originated in the 1500s, AD that is, but no one is very sure."

"ROLL UP, ROLL UP! TRY YOUR SHARP SHOOTING SKILLS! GENTLEMEN, TRY YOUR LUCK FOR THE LADIES, THREE SHOTS FOR A POUND, HIT THE TARGET TO WIN!"

"Sorry, can't resist" Jack said and wandered over.

"You Sir, yes, the fine gentleman in the coat, try your luck Sir?" he offered a rifle.

Jack smirked and paid up, taking the gun and shouldering it. He loosed off a shot, altered his stance a little, shot again, then again in quick succession.

"Third time lucky Sir!" the man handed something over and Jack grinned and handed it to Gwen who giggled and hugged it. It was a soft toy tiger made of velvet.

"Well done Jack" she said.

"Yeah, you gotta know the tricks." he murmured "Sights filed down, designed to throw you off unless you're wise to it."

A group of midgets ran across in front of them, pulling a gilded carriage with another midget in it, a woman. The board on the back of the wagon proclaimed "Annie, the Living Doll". She smiled coquettishly and twirled her parasol. She was wearing garments similar to the girl who had taken their money on the gate. On a little person, it looked vaguely grotesque. Jack bowed as she passed, to which she regally inclined her head and hid behind a fluttering fan. However, the fan caught his eye, the way she was holding it, partially folded and angled. Jack frowned. In another time and place that would have meant something, something slightly disturbing. She would have clearly been telling him to leave, leave and don't come back.

A man dressed in shining green satin waked past, a turban on his head, his body draped with three large snakes, the snakes hissing and twining about his hands, neck and waist. A pair of glossy black horses pranced past, red and gold leather trappings decorated with bells and feathers, lead by a doe-eyed girl who smiled at Owen. They passed booths advertising the bearded lady (too much testosterone according to Owen) and the unicorn (probably a goat with a horn stuck on its head, again Owen's opinion), one advertising the man who couldn't die and another showing a picture of a knife throwing act with a girl dressed as a Native American woman, complete with deerskin dress and feathers.

Jack stopped and went back, looking hard at the poster of the Man Who Couldn't Die. He frowned and came back, looking slightly disturbed.

"What's wrong?" Ianto asked.

"Nothing, just thought that act sounded familiar."

"And, was it?"

"No, I didn't recognise it" they walked on.

They came back to the carousel near the gate. It was stationary now, waiting.

"Hey" Owen said "Look at this?" and he pointed to the horses. "This one's called Jack and this one's Ianto. Gwen, there's yours and…" his voice trailed away.

"Oh my God" Gwen said, looking at them. All the names were somebody they knew, somebody they had come into direct contact with.

"Something funny is going on here" She said and thumbed her comm link "Tosh? Tosh, come in? Tosh? Where are you?" she looked at the rest of them "Now what?"

"Not sure" Jack admitted.

"But I don't think we're in Kansas any more" Ianto muttered.

**So where are they? Find out in the next instalment. **

Did you like this? Please review...I'm just indulging my liking for the gothic with this one. 


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: I do not own Torchwood, The Last Unicorn or Something Wicked This Way Comes…much as I'd like to. No infringement intended….**

**Rated M for safety. Some swearing, also some sexual scenes later. **

…

Tosh tried not to panic. She was sure that this was a temporary glitch and maybe one originating in their communication systems so she ran some diagnostic tests. After a fruitless twenty minutes (more than enough time to find the problem) she had to admit that the problem wasn't at their end and she was now officially allowed to start worrying. There wasn't any indication that the team had found the object either, it was still pulsing away on the monitor.

"We need to find the item and get gone before Tosh wonders what's going on." Gwen said "Knowing her she'll be going frantic right now, trying to work out what happened."

"Without her, this is going to be needle and haystack time." Owen commented darkly.

Jack thumbed the comm unit in his ear "Can all of you hear me?"

"Loud and clear." Gwen said, Owen stuck his thumb up and Ianto nodded.

"So, we have short range personal communication, so let's split. Cover more ground that way. This thing surely can't be big, but it is here. Rendezvous back in…" he checked his watch "a half hour." and he strode off in the direction of the big top. Ianto headed for one of the sideshows, the Hall of Mirrors, Gwen went towards the carousel and Owen headed off the nearest stall which happened to be the penny arcade.

_**Jack's POV**  
Why is something nagging me and I cannot remember what it is? I hate that. Like your brain is sabotaging you. Everything about this place screams familiarity and I cannot tell myself why…_

_**Gwen's POV**  
Oo, roundabout horses, always loved them. There's so many places for this thing, whatever it is, to be hidden though. This could take us all night…oo, he's tasty. Must be the guy who runs the carousel. Try talking to him, maybe he can shed light on this._

_**Owen's POV**  
For God's sake, what a geek-trap this place is. Why did I get caught in this twilight zone tonight of all nights? Was going to a piss-up in the Horizon Bar later, Jed said there would be two girls I shouldn't miss. Now I'm going to do exactly that._

_**Ianto's POV**  
This place is creeping me out, its too grotesque. In this day and age, its far too retro for my comfort. God, I remember this, there was a fair with one of these when I was a kid. Hall of Mirrors, like a maze, you have to work out how to find the centre…_

The Big Top was populated with a smattering of people in the audience, clowns cavorting around the centre circle, bumping into each other and laughing uproariously, spilling water over each other and throwing 'custard' pies. The little carriage that had carried the tiny woman in her showgirl gear was in the middle of the ring and she was swinging on a trapeze above. Her retinue were standing round below, waiting. She was going through her paces performing daring stunts for the audience. Standing on the swing, twisting her legs round the ropes and hanging upside down, twirling round and standing on her head, she did it all. Jack watched, entranced, wondering why it was familiar. When she came down, she was met with a scattering of applause but Jack clapped the loudest. She noticed him and grinned.

"What's a fine lookin' Gen'leman like you doin' here with us?" she said, winking suggestively.

"Admiring your act Ma'am" he said with a small bow.

"Thank you kindly Sir" She said "Walk with me." and she walked off to the back of the tent, her hips swaying as suggestively as she could manage.

"They call me Ruby" she said, by way of introduction.

"Captain Jack Harkness Ma'am"

"Oh, a Captain eh? Well, my fine Captain, what I lack in inches, I make up for with enthusiasm…" she winked again, looking him up and down "I'm sure you could satisfy…my curiosity, tell me why you're here, of all places?"

"I'm visiting, curious, that's all."

"Be careful Captain, you know what they say about curiosity and the cat?"

"And what would that be Ma'am?"

"Curiosity ate it, but he's a freak and that's what they do…" her laughter pealed like small bells. "Take heed Captain and take care. You won't find nothin' but trouble and strife and lies and deceits here. Go home, leave us and ours. Torchwood has nothing for us…" and leaving him rather stunned, she swept away between two caravans, vanishing in the night.

Owen found the peep show, watching grainy images of servants looking through keyholes at ladies undressing, if it could be called that, the amount of underwear they had on. "In olden days a glimpse of stocking was looked on as something shocking, but now Heaven knows, anything goes…" he realised the refrain was playing on a fairground organ nearby. Too bloody right, he thought morosely, olden days indeed… he could be pulling some bird in a bar by now who would be wearing far less than these ladies were in their underwear… As he watched the flickering images as he turned the handle, one of the figures turned to face him. It was Jack, grinning at him. The words flicked into view and Owen stopped turning the handle in shock. The reel kept going though, kept scrolling despite his hand hanging limp by his side.

"Through the keyhole, many things can be seen…" the figure bending over looking stood up and turned to face him. "Face your fears and find the way…"

"Holy Fucking Shit!" he swore and jumped back, shocked to the core as he realised the figure staring back at him was himself.

Gwen climbed on the carousel and caught the eye of the man who she had seen weaving his way through, making sure people were seated safely. He swaggered over and leaned on one of the horses, his bright eyes looking her up and down. He was wearing black leather pants and a long black coat, spiky blond hair above blue eyes that gazed at her with amusement. "Now then, what have we here?"

"Hi" she said "lovely roundabout."

"Thank you" he said "You like the ponies?"

"Yeah, love 'em, ever since I was small."

"Well m'dear, you ride on these and you'll get the ride of your life…" he leaned forward suggestively. She smiled, leaning on one of the nearest horses for support. This guy was worse than Jack for flirting. He suddenly leaned in very close and his next words chilled her. "Before long, one of you will be dead, use the little time you have left carefully."

The mirrors freaked Ianto out a little, seeing himself reflected back ad infinitum. Still, the barber had trimmed his hair well at the back… and his suit did hang well across his shoulders…he paused to smooth the hem of his jacket, then he jumped when he looked up and saw Jack reflected standing behind him. Assuming the older man had come to join him he smiled and said "Hey, did you find anything?" Jack put his head on one side, not speaking. "You know, in the big top, did you find anything interesting?"

"Trouble and strife and lies and deceit, that's all you'll find here." he said, his voice toneless.

"What? Who told you that?"

"A showgirl. Why should I trust you Ianto?"

"What? Jack, what are you talking about?" Ianto was disturbed by this new twist of events.

"You betrayed us with Lisa, you nearly killed us Ianto, why should anything you say be truth?"

"Jack, don't do this…" He turned to face his boss. Ianto's face drained of colour. There was nobody there. He turned back…Jack's reflection was there in the mirror, beside him…Suddenly, another figure joined him. Silver metal glinted in the glass.

"Oh God!" Ianto stared, paralysed with shock. "Lisa!"

Gwen looked at the blond man blankly. What had he just said? "Who are you?" she asked and he smiled "Just work here, now are you going to jump on or not? Its free…" She looked at him and he held out his hand to help her. Unable to resist, she clambered on board, holding the spiralling golden pole that transfixed the horse through its body. The music started and the carousel began to roll.

Back at the Hub, Tosh watched her screen as the point of light on the monitor flared and disappeared. The blip that was the artefact had gone.

**There it is…short chapter but I wanted to get this done. Reviews please…**


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